162 HYDROGRAPHIC MANUAL PaGE 48 



as well as any authentic local maps. Copies of the latter, if obtainable, should be 

 forwarded to the Washington Office with the special report on geographic names 

 (see 163). 



For names not found on published maps and charts, well-established local usage is 

 the best and practically only authority. It is sometimes difficult, however, to ascertain 

 whether or not a name is well established. Markers placed by an official agency 

 such as a State highway department can usually be accepted as reliable evidence. 

 Judgment is necessary in determining the reliability of persons questioned about names. 

 Only those who have been long established in a locality should be accepted as authori- 

 ties ; those whose business has an intimate connection with the land should be consulted 

 about names of topographic features, but only those living near or who have interests 

 connected with the water should be consulted about names of hydrographic features. 

 Newcomers in a locality may either not know or be indifferent about giving correct 

 information, while others may intentionally mislead the inquirer for personal reasons. 



The correct spelling of a geographic name must be ascertained. This is almost as 

 important as knowing what the name is. Many common proper names may be cor- 

 rectly spelled in two or more ways; for example, Jouett and Jewett, Anderson and 

 Andersen, Paynes and Paines. The pronunciation of a name, no matter how common 

 it seems, cannot be trusted as a guide to the spelling; for example. Reaves Point on Cape 

 Fear River is not Reeves Point, Jourdan River in Mississippi is not Jordan River, and 

 Centers Point in Maine is not Senters Point. Well-established local usage can gener- 

 ally be accepted for the correct spelling of a new name, although it must be accepted 

 with reservation for names that have historic background, particularly if the language 

 of the present inhabitants differs from that of the original settlers. If the only authority 

 for the spelling is local inhabitants, care must be taken to impress on them the im- 

 portance of this feature. The spelling of new names may often be settled authori- 

 tatively by reference to legal documents. 



Where names on federal maps and charts are found to be in disagreement or to be 

 in disagreement with local usage a rather complete report of the facts is required. Many 

 such cases may be traced to careless spelling. There was a time when comparatively 

 little attention was given to the spelling of names, and during the settlement and early 

 development of the country the spelling of even the commonest words was unsettled 

 and capricious. Even today the spelling of the names of some of the prominent 

 citizens of that period is still in dispute because they themselves signed their own 

 names variously to different documents. The spelling of foreign and Indian names 

 which have been applied to geographic features is often particularly confused. 



A geographic name is usually applied to some particular feature which has identity 

 like an individual. If the feature should cease to exist that name becomes meaningless 

 and should be deleted from the charts. The practice of transferring a geographic 

 name from one feature which has ceased to exist to another similar feature in the 

 locality leads only to confusion and should be abolished. A typical example is where a 

 previous inlet through a barrier beach has been closed permanently and another similar 

 inlet breaks through a few miles away. However, this objection does not apply to 

 an inlet or point of land that has migrated from its original position. 



Errors in geographic names may occur because the name was incorrectly applied 

 to a feature by the surveyor. It may appear on a map or chart as referring to one 

 feature whereas as used locally it applies to a different feature in the immediate vicinity. 



